The Importance Of Regular Eye Exams For Children

Children are amazingly adaptive. So, if your child is born with specific eye issues or diminished visual acuity, their brains adjust, and they can seem to have near-perfect vision. This is why regular eye exams for children are so essential.

Eye Exams For Children Correct Vision Issues & Improve School Performance

While your pediatrician may be able to detect more obvious issues, such as a lazy eye or crossed eyes, a lack of visual acuity may go undetected, which can negatively impact academic performance and classroom behavior.

According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), children should have their first pediatric eye exam between the ages of two and five - during their preschool years. This is an ideal time to discover any amount of vision loss so we can correct it with eyeglasses. Getting your child used to wearing glasses now sets them up for greater success when they enter school.

If their visual acuity is around 20/20 (normal “perfect” vision), they should have their eyes checked by an optometrist every two to three years. If your child doesn’t read yet, that’s not a problem. We use special tools that can pick up on your child’s ability to focus, as well as symbol-based eye charts that don’t require any level of literacy.

If your child does require corrective lenses, your optometrist may recommend annual visits to keep their eyes on things.

Most Common Vision Issues Diagnosed In Children

The most common vision issues we tend to see in children and young adults are:

Lazy eye (amblyopia) or crossed eyes (strabismus)

A pediatrician usually diagnoses these conditions, but both require early intervention or can become permanent. In most cases, specialized vision therapy - including eye exercises - should be started before age 5-7 for best results. 

• Lazy eye. Lazy eye describes a condition where one eye has weakened eye muscles. The weaker eye will tend to “wander” in the eye socket as it tries to bring things into focus. It may also look like one eye is focusing while the other (lazy eye) is off-center. Over time, the optic nerve starts ignoring the information sent to it from the weaker eye, making the muscles even weaker. If it’s not corrected early enough, it can become permanent.
• Crossed eyes. With this condition, both eyes have weak muscles that struggle to focus in sync. When relaxed, they may drift toward the center, hence the name. However, most people with crossed eyes will look like each eye is focused on something different. Like a lazy eye, this condition requires early childhood intervention.

Again, both would typically be caught during routine pediatric exams, resulting in a referral to an optometrist or ophthalmologist. However, mild cases could be overlooked, such as your child’s first eye exam before the age of 5, which is an ideal time to diagnose and correct it.

Nearsighted (myopia) 

This condition means your child sees things up close just fine (their books, toys, screens, etc.). However, their distance vision is blurred, making it harder for them to see the whiteboard, classroom screen, or balls during P.E. or sports.

Farsighted (hyperopia)

If your child is farsighted, they can see clearly in the distance, but objects and images that are closer are blurry. This can be very misleading because a child’s ability to point things out on a walk or from the car windows can trick parents into thinking they see fine, causing them to misread other symptoms (see below), indicating their child has a vision problem.

Astigmatism

Astigmatism affects near and far vision, causing a universal degree of blurriness. It’s caused when anatomical parts of the eye are more elliptical than spherical, which creates double points of light on the retina - rather than the single focal point we need for 20/20 vision.

All three of these issues affecting vision clarity are usually corrected by eyeglasses. Once your children are older (typically high school age), we can discuss whether contact lenses make more sense. Eventually, in adulthood, LASIK surgery may be their choice to eliminate glasses altogether. 

Symptoms Your Child Has Vision Problems

One of the reasons eye exams are so important for children is that the symptoms indicating blurred vision can easily be chalked up to something else. You may just assume they’re fidgety, or they just aren’t interested in reading. 

In fact, many of the behavioral issues we see in young school-age children are linked to the fact they can’t see clearly. This makes things far less interesting, so they create their own diversions and entertainment. 

Symptoms your child may struggle with vision include:

• Blinking more frequently than normal.
• Winking or shutting one eye to see clearly (often a symptom of crossed or lazy eye).
• Struggling to read (not everyone loves to read, but children who can’t see clearly may say things like “reading makes me tired”), which is a sign of eye strain.
• Getting headaches. Children’s headaches should always be evaluated by their pediatrician and an optometrist. In addition to eye issues, headaches may be a sign of dietary influence, lack of sleep, too much screen time, or social/home anxiety.
• Getting tired whenever they read or use their screen for reasonable amounts of time.
• Fidgety or disruptive classroom behaviors.

Don't take it for granted if your child exhibits any of the above symptoms. Schedule an appointment with their pediatrician and your optometrist to see if there’s a root cause for their experience. And, of course, healthy lifestyle habits are also essential for children to thrive at home and at school.

Schedule Your Child’s First Eye Exam At Eye to Eye Family Vision Care

We love treating the whole family at Eye to Eye Family Vision Care. 

Contact us online to book an appointment for your child’s first eye exam, or call our office at 918-227-3937. You’re welcome back with them so we can explain exactly what we do, introduce them to our diagnostic tools, and establish their visual acuity. 

If your child needs corrective lenses, they will be amazed at the “magic” when we flip to the right prescription, and they see their eye chart go from blurry to crystal clear!